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Friday, September 27, 2013

Philosophy of Caitlin Star

Who were the Bull Mongoni and what is the contemporary 21st
century philosophy carrying their namesake? This excerpt from the back cover
blurb of “Caitlin Star” gives a hint.

“Gunner Star takes on Caitlin as his protégé and trains her
in the ways of the Bull Mongoni, a mythic species of hominids that lived long
ago. An exciting, brave new world opens up for Caitlin as she discovers a new
philosophy, achieves an astonishing level of physical and mental focus, and
begins to see the world around her from a new perspective.”

Who were the Bull Mongoni?

Today there are four known remaining groups of hominids, referred
to as the genera “hominidae” in evolution
flow charts, but better known as the advanced group of intelligent primates
called great apes. They are chimpanzees (2 species), gorillas (2 species),
orangutans (2 species), and the only great ape that kills for sport, practices
cruelty, and willfully destroys everything in their path—Homo Sapiens (one
species, humans).

There may only be four great apes today, but for several
millions of years—right up until recent history—there were scores of distinct hominids
walking the earth, all of them descended from a common ancestor some 17 million
years ago.

As you can see above, this subfamily Homininae branched off
into two distinct tribes approximately 8-10 million years ago. One tribe was
the Hominini—humans, chimpanzees, and bonobos. The second tribe was
Gorillini—gorillas.

The Sacred Scrolls speak of a third great ape that branched
out from the Homininae subfamily, the tribe known as the Bull Mongoni.

The Scrolls, oral history, as well as the Sumerian writings
and the legends of the Neolithic North American natives, allude to a great race
of man-beasts that lived among the wild creatures deep in the rain forests of
the Congo and the secluded mountains of Eurasia. These hirsute hominids were
swift, strong, and muscular. Although highly-social with a rich culture, unlike
the other hominids, the Bull Mongoni could be loners as well. An individual would roam a vast territory,
often with a big cat as a companion. Some theorize this is how the great cats
learned to patrol a territory.

By all accounts, the Bull Mongoni were peaceful and showed
great respect for their great ape brothers and sisters. But the Homo sapiens
who exploded out of Africa like a plague were not so accommodating. Humans then,
as now seem hard-wired for only one purpose—to cause needless destruction.

What is the Bull Mongoni Philosophy?

The ancient Sumerian texts refer to the Bull Mongoni as “the
protectors of the earth and all creatures.” The philosophy of the mythic
hominids could be best categorized as a “Mother Earth”, a belief that there is
a universal force, a spiritual energy that expresses itself through natural
world and the living creatures around us.

They were peaceful, but if crossed, a Bull Mongoni could
unleash a frightening fury. There are documented
accounts of human encounters with Bull Mongoni right up until the Roman Empire.

After the Homo sapien explosion throughout Africa and out
across Eurasia, the remaining Bull Mongoni needed to adapt to survive in a
world that was now teeming with this murderous new species of hominids. A
species that would end up dominating the planet and destroying everything in
their path until there were almost 8 billion of them.

At their darkest hour a new force emerged among the Bull
Mongoni, a formidable warrior named Tarmok. Under his leadership Tarmok and his
Bull Mongoni brothers and sisters adapted in two ways.

First by becoming stealth—staying deep in the forests, high
in the mountains, and dispersing into remote areas away from belligerent Homo
sapiens. Second—they became fierce and deadly warriors.

Already five times as strong as humans, under Tarmok’s
guidance the Bull Mongoni learned to master the art of the flesh by
conditioning and strengthening the body with rigorous physical exercise and
frequent feedings. They became experts of identifying plant herbs with
medicinal and performance-enhancing effect. Long before the armies of Mesopotamia
began to march across the Mediterranean creating the first human empire, the
Bull Mongoni became masters of forging metals into broadswords. Inspired by
Tarmok, the Bull Mongoni became the most formidable warriors the planet has
ever known.

Gunner once described his philosophy to Caitlin as a mix of “nihilistic
barbarism, physicality, and Native American spirituality”. But perhaps the best
way to convey the core of the Bull Mongoni philosophy are in the words of
Tarmok himself as translated from The Sacred Scrolls.

The 13 mantras of the Bull Mongoni

1) Protect those who cannot protect themselves.

2) Destroy all bullies.

3) There is no forgiveness! There is no invisible man in the
sky to get you off the hook.

4) You are the sum of all your actions past and present.
Your sins are yours and yours alone. Have the courage to own them.

5) My body, my business.

6) Technology improves, but man does not. The Homo sapiens
are the same greedy, selfish, destructive, cruel, murdering, species that
migrated out of Africa and exploded like a virus across Eurasia 50,000 years
ago destroying everything in their path.

7) Kindness will be rewarded with fierce loyalty.

8) Let go of your fear. And use your enemy's fear against
him.

9) You want to hunt for sport? Then try hunting a man who is
equally armed. Then we will see what a tough guy you really are. What's the
matter? Afraid of a fair fight?

10) When you sculpt and harden the flesh, you sharpen and
focus the mind.

11) All disputes should be settled with a broadsword and a
fight to the death.

12) You want to see me dead? Then you will have to come here
and kill me yourself with your bare hands. Come on. I dare you. I double-dare
you.

13) Good God it's great to be a Bull Mongoni!

Caitlin Star now available at bookstores and online retailers everywhere

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About Me

James J. Caterino is a freelance writer based in South Florida. The wildly controversial scribe is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and the Action/Cut school of directing. He is the author of "Technicolor Dreams", "Battle of the Network Superheroes", "The B Girl", the "Caitlin Star" series, "Steel Phantom", "The Selfie", "The Last Neanderthal", "She", "Action Figure", "All About Amy", "Video Noir", "Among the Stars", hundreds of essays, movie, television, and music reviews, screenplays, short stories, and much more. Please visit Jamescaterino.com for more